Alpine Valley For Sale at $8.4 Million
Famed music venue, 37 years old, nation’s second largest amphitheater, has hit hard times.
Alpine Valley
The 198 acre Alpine Valley Music Theatre in East Troy Wisconsin is for sale with an asking price of $8,437,500. The 37-year old concert venue has a capacity of 37,000 and is the second largest amphitheater in the United States. A little more than 5 years remains on the lease with concert operator Live Nation, with a guaranteed annual rent of $675,000 for the purchaser. The seller is an affiliate of Zilber Co., which has owned the property since 1989.
The property is under what is known as a “Triple Net Lease,” the offering explains, “with no landlord responsibilities for the maintenance, repair and replacement of the Property for the duration of the lease term.“
Besides maintaining the facility, the tenant pays taxes, as well.
The venue hosted Jimmy Buffett Saturday, and Kiss earlier this month, but these are two of only 14 shows held there since September 2011. The Grateful Dead played 20 times at the facility, and Phish played 13 times.
But the Under the Influence tour scheduled for August and featuring Wiz Khalifa and Young Jeezy was cancelled in July, although it played a date in Illinois. This points out a geographical anomaly in Alpine Valley concerts — they are recorded as Milwaukee events if the band also plays in Illinois. If not, they are considered Chicago concerts.
Alpine Valley Music Theatre has had a complicated ownership and management structure in the past. In 1989, Joseph Entertainment Co. sold the property to a Joseph Zilber partnership for $4.5 million dollars, with Zilber maintaining a stake in Joseph Entertainment. That firm, headed by Joseph Balestrieri, [The Rave, Eagles Club] held the management contract for Alpine Valley and the Riverside Theater, which was owned by Zilber.
“It’s a good deal for both sides,” Zilber executive Mike Mervis said at the time.
But two years later, Zilber evicted Joseph Entertainment saying it failed to pay rent and make improvements to the facility. Balestrieri claimed that Zilber had stripped $5 million in assets from Joseph Entertainment Group, but later issued an apology for this statement. Zilber also stopped financing the concerts, which had been the basis of one investor buying a 25 percent share. Quite a mess, all around.
Walworth County property records show the registered owner of the theater to be Walworth Property, Inc. with a registered agent of James B. Young, Esq. of Young Madigan, SC with offices at 710 N. Plankinton Ave., Suite 1200. This is the headquarters of Zilber, and Young uses a Zilber e-mail address in his correspondence. One 124-acre parcel of the property is assessed at over $5 million, with taxes of over $83,000 paid in full.
The entire property is offered for sale by the Stan Johnson Company. According to the firm’s offering, the amphitheater has these attributes:
- Nationally Renowned, Unique Landmark Concert Venue with 37+ Years of Operating History – The Alpine Valley Music Theatre is a recognized landmark and regional destination, as well as an irreplaceable asset and has been operational for over 37 years. With a capacity of approximately 37,000, the Property is the second largest amphitheater in the United States
- Operated & Leased by Best-in-Class Concert Promoter, Live Nation – Live Nation Worldwide, Inc. reported FY2013 Revenue of $5.819 billion, and had a net worth of $1.490 billion as of September 30, 2013
- Mission-Critical, Central Regional Location – The Alpine Valley Music Theatre draws concert-goers from Milwaukee (approx. 40 miles northeast) as well as the Chicagoland Area (approx. 90 miles southwest), critical to its operation as a regional concert destination
- Tenant Lease Renewal – Demonstrated Tenant commitment to the Property with an extension of the base lease term for an additional 17 years following the original base lease term expiration date
- Absolute NNN Lease Structure – The Property’s lease is landlord-favorable with no landlord responsibilities for maintenance, repair or replacement for the duration of the lease term
- Location Adjacent to Alpine Valley Resort – The Property is situated in a regional recreational destination, adjacent to the Alpine Valley Resort’s facilities including 100 hotel rooms, a golf course and a ski hill.
General Info
- Price: $8,437,500
- Cap Rate: 8.00%
- Property Type: Other
- Land Area: 198.37 Acres
- Remaining Term: 5.35 years
- Current NOI: $675,000
- Status: Available
Buyer beware. Joe Balestrieri is a crooked bastard. As you can see, he filed bankruptcy in’89, then sold it to himself. Screwed local contractors out of millions. And myself and all employees out of wages owed. Crook.
Will Alpine Valley just be dormant (until it’s bought)? And might a new owner not want it to be a music venue?
back in the 70’s and 80’s this was the scene for awesome music.